Wife says gangster asked for jail move week before attack

Gynton Grantley played Carl Williams' character in the television series Underbelly which attracted a huge following in Australia and New Zealand. Photo / Supplied

Notorious Melbourne gangster Carl Williams repeatedly asked to be moved to another prison wing before he was clubbed to death inside Victoria's highest-security jail, his former wife said yesterday.

Roberta Williams appeared to contradict the state's Corrections Minister, Bob Cameron, who said shortly after the murder that Williams had been "happy with his [prison] arrangements". The convicted killer was allegedly attacked by a fellow inmate at Barwon Prison's Acacia Unit in April.

His ex-wife told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the 39-year-old had made repeated requests to be moved, most recently about a week before his death.

"He told us that he wanted to be moved on several occasions, and had said to us that he had asked the authorities to move him, but that fell on deaf ears," she said.

The baby-faced Williams, who was serving a life sentence for four murders, shared a wing of the Acacia unit with two other prisoners. One of them, a 36-year-old whose identity has been suppressed, allegedly struck Williams from behind with an iron bar. The man, who appeared in court last week, has indicated that he will argue at his trial that he acted in self-defence.

Roberta Williams accused prison authorities of failing in their "duty of care", and said she planned to seek compensation for her daughter, Dhakota.

"They [the Government] class Carl as just another criminal murderer being killed ... but as far as I'm concerned he was my husband and my daughter's father and I won't let it rest until we get some answers."

The Government has launched three inquiries into Williams' death, but has hinted that the full findings may never be made public, for security and legal reasons. There has been speculation about a "hit" ordered from outside, particularly as the gangster had begun helping police to investigate corruption within their own ranks.

The prison officers' union has defended the conduct of its members, who did not find Williams bleeding and dying until 25 minutes after the attack.

Roberta Williams said she did not know whether fears for his safety had prompted her ex-husband's requests to be moved.